European Community strengthens aviation
relations with the United Arab Emirates

The EU and the United Arab Emirates have signed an
aviation agreement which allows European airlines to fly between the United Arab
Emirates and any EU Member State. The agreement removes nationality restrictions
in the bilateral air services agreements, and therefore allows any EU airline to
operate flights between any EU Member State where it is established and the
United Arab Emirates. It acknowledges the existence of the European single
market for air transport in the relations between the EU and the United Arab
Emirates.

"I welcome this important step in the EU's air transport relations with the
United Arab Emirates. The agreement recognises that airlines in the EU are not
any longer national airlines but Community airlines. All EU airlines have now
non-discriminatory access to the air transport market between the EU and the
United Arab Emirates”, declared Vice-President Barrot upon signing the
agreement.

The so-called 'horizontal' aviation agreement does not replace the bilateral
agreements in place between the EU Member States and the United Arab Emirates,
but brings them in line with EU law, by removing the nationality restrictions
contained in bilateral air services agreements. Horizontal agreements have been
negotiated with 29 countries worldwide. About 600 air services agreements have
already been modified by the joint efforts of the European Commission and Member
States to replace nationality rules with the principle of EU airline
designation.

The agreement is considered as an important step in the aviation relations
between the EU and the United Arab Emirates, which is the first country in the
Gulf region to sign such an agreement. Air transport is crucial for the
relations between the two regions, linking people, cultures and
businesses.More information on the EU and International Aviation: